Chapter 112

“I… I forcibly calmed my trembling heart and opened my mouth.”

“Uh, how long have you known…?”

“……”

After a long silence, the Hero casually tossed out a reply.

“From the very beginning, I suspected it.”

“From the very beginning?!”

If from the very start… since the moment the Sword of the Hero was drawn?

So all my attempts to hide my true identity by pretending to be the Dragon Priestess or the Representative of the Goddess were completely useless?!

Ugh… Uuuuuhhhhh!!! Gahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

That’s it! I’ve made up my mind!

“If only I could erase your memories… if only I could open your skull and clear out the contents to make you forget who I am…!”

“Don’t panic so much. Just calm down, Sister.”

“I’ve regained my senses!!”

“You’re wrong… I can’t even talk about this for a while…”

The dignity of my godhood!!! Well, not that I ever craved such things, but having everything exposed to someone I raised like a child! Gaaaah! Gaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!

I need a blanket! I need a blanket to do the infamous ‘blanket kick’! There must be a law that says I need a blanket big enough to cover my main body!!! Ah, though my main body doesn’t really need a blanket, but still! The blanket kick requires a blanket! A huge blanket! An absolutely enormous blanket!!

With such a giant blanket, maybe I could cover the whole world! Or at least a city if covering the world is too much…

When harsh winters come, I could use that blanket to preserve warmth, run generators with coal power to maintain the city’s temperature! Child labor! Wood shavings disguised as food additives!!! Gaaahh!! Gaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!

Cough. What on earth am I saying right now? I feel my spirit slipping into another dimension.

After pulling my spirit back to its original place, I took a deep breath.

Phew, well. What’s done is done. There’s nothing I can do about it now.

Would erasing your memories of me from your head change anything at this point?

It’s quite embarrassing that the Hero knows my secret, but if he promises to keep it safe, then that should be enough.

Yeah. That’s how it is.

“Hmph.”

“Are you calm now?”

“Y-yes… I showed an embarrassing side.”

I can’t face the Hero after this. It’s too embarrassing. I can’t lift my head.

“Let’s continue the story calmly.”

“Yes. If you calm down, we can talk.”

At the Hero’s words, I could only let out a small sigh.

“Alright, you knew from the start?”

“Yes. From the moment you appeared after drawing the Sword of the Hero.”

What?! How could you know right away? What did I do back then?

Other than cursing that good-for-nothing and sending him flying to his country, what else was there? Hmm…

I don’t know! How did you recognize me as a goddess just by looking at me?!

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“That is… Well…”

The Hero scratched the bridge of his nose awkwardly before speaking.

“Because you were too beautiful… I thought you couldn’t possibly be human.”

“What?”

“WHAT?”

“To be honest, I’d never seen anyone as beautiful as you! So I assumed you weren’t human but a goddess!”

The Hero said this while blushing red and squeezing out the words.

Eh, so you thought I was a goddess because I was too pretty?

What is this? Definitely, I’ve heard people call celebrities or beauties ‘goddesses,’ but is that what happened here?

And yet, it turned out to actually be true??

“Umm…”

“Frankly speaking, your various words and actions, performing miracles, reviving the dead, conversing casually with beings called gods… Honestly, I even doubted whether you were trying to hide your identity at all.”

“Yeah… About that…”

“Also, you seemed familiar with the God of Elves and the God of Dwarves, spoke casually with the God of the Sea, and quickly realized the true nature of the First Beast who I initially mistook for a monster.”

At the Hero’s words, I nodded slightly. True, that did happen, but still!!!

“Moreover, you created completely new things without any hesitation, making me think you weren’t trying to hide your identity at all.”

Hnnnggg… Indeed…

I’m such an idiot…

“Anyway, that’s how I came to realize that you weren’t merely a human pretending to be the Dragon Priestess, but the actual Goddess of Life who had temporarily taken human form.”

“S-so that’s how it was…”

Just… Everything I did ended up being a clue, didn’t it?

I was such a fool! Such a fool!

“So, knowing my true identity, why did you confess your feelings anyway? Even though you knew I was a god?”

“That… To be honest, I was half-giving up.”

“Giving up…?”

“To be honest, I fully understood that monopolizing the love of a goddess like you was impossible. I also considered the possibility that my confession might disappoint you and cause you to leave my side.”

The Hero’s resolute face.

Were you thinking those thoughts all along?

“But I didn’t want to suppress these feelings inside forever without ever expressing them.”

The Hero continued awkwardly.

“Even if one day you meet someone else, fall in love, and build a family, I wanted to keep the memory of liking you somewhere in my heart. I preferred expressing an unattainable love rather than giving up without saying anything.”

Huh… Huh… Love, huh…

Such an emotion is difficult for me to understand…

“I… ”

As I was about to say something, the Hero shook his head slightly.

“You don’t have to answer. Frankly speaking, I don’t think I could handle the endless, immense love that the Goddess of Life possesses. I simply wanted to express my feelings and satisfy myself, not to hear a response from you.”

“…”

“And besides, you are the most noble and pure goddess admired by other gods. For a mere human like me to receive such vast love would surely invite divine punishment from the other gods.”

At the Hero’s words, I couldn’t respond.

“Just like this is fine. This is enough.”

I could only look at the Hero’s face, which seemed half-resigned.

—

Though the Hero said it was fine, I’m not fine!

What to do about this awkward atmosphere?! The Hero seems unnecessarily gloomy! And I can’t say anything while being cautious of the Hero’s mood! Meanwhile, the God of Beasts pretends to sleep deeply, swept away by our atmosphere!!!

Ugh… Though it was a half-given-up confession from the Hero, still…

Definitely unreasonable! It’s unreasonable to imagine me dating a man!! Unreasonable!! Female corruption is unreasonable!!!

Though I feel sorry for the Hero! But unreasonable is unreasonable! If only my spirit were female, then maybe… I could have just closed my eyes and spent my days until the Hero grew old and passed away…

Hmm, wait.

That means… Hmm…

If I create a double and have them stay with the Hero instead?

A double not directly connected to my spirit, but one whose spirit I copy and modify to possess a female personality?

No, wouldn’t that be a deception instead? Rather, if I create a double, establish a connection within their personality, overlay my memories and a female self, and form a complete… Dragon Priestess?

Then perhaps…

Could this double of mine become the Hero’s companion?

Of course, due to not being my complete main body, there might be some differences in personality, but fundamentally, wouldn’t this double still be ‘me’?

By using this…

Could I make the Hero happier?

Therefore…

“Hero.”

“Yes?”

“If, by any chance… Suppose…”

I cautiously opened my mouth.

“If the Goddess of Life were to leave this physical body and a separate existence inheriting her memories and personality were to emerge… In that case…”

An existence originating from ‘me’ but no longer ‘me’… A Dragon Priestess…

Could they guard the Hero’s side?

“Then…”

“Sister.”

My thoughts…

“Were appreciated, thank you.”

Were cut off by the Hero.

“But that wouldn’t be the complete you.”

“Hero…”

“I fell in love with you, just you. The supreme goddess among gods, possessing omnipotent powers, sometimes making mistakes, occasionally clumsy, yet always striving for the sake of other lives.”

The Hero smiled firmly.

“That’s why I fell in love with you. So it’s alright.”

The Hero’s resolve was steadfast.

“Simply knowing that you understand my feelings even a little is enough.”

That’s why I couldn’t say anything more.

“Just… You see… If you could stay by my side until I die, that would be enough. It’s only a few decades after all, a fleeting moment for gods who live eternally.”

The Hero continued.

“It’s fine even if you don’t love me back. Simply sharing time with you is sufficient.”

Ah, though adding that he’d consider having children with you cute, I shook my head slightly.

“Really, you’re impossible.”

You’re truly an impossible person.

Then! The empty space in the Hero’s life that I cannot fill must be filled properly!!

The Hero’s companion must be a wonderful person! Someone who can love the Hero!

Since I cannot love the Hero romantically, though perhaps as family…

Therefore! I will thoroughly choose the Hero’s companion!!

Afterward… Until the Hero falls into eternal sleep in peace, I’ll stay by as family.

It’s only a few decades after all. For someone who has lived for tens of thousands of years, it’s a short time.

Ah, now that I think about it, I must prepare a place for where the Hero will go after death.

A place for souls freed from reincarnation or those whose names remain in history… A sort of heaven.